Sustainability in full swing at JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort

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Avatar of Linda Hohnholz
Written by Linda Hohnholz

LOS ANGELES, California – Green Globe congratulates JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort on the multi-faceted sustainable initiatives staff and management have implemented as part of their re-certification strate

LOS ANGELES, California – Green Globe congratulates JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort on the multi-faceted sustainable initiatives staff and management have implemented as part of their re-certification strategy.

David Thomson, Chief Operating Officer of JA Resorts & Hotels said, โ€œWe are thankful to Green Globe for accrediting our beach property JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort with their esteemed certification, and recognizing our continuous efforts in driving sustainability. We use the Hotel Optimizer monitoring and benchmarking which easily analyses the consumption and costs associated with energy, water and waste disposal while comparing us with other properties in the area. The optimizer, now in full swing, helps us set achievable goals and targets and this is definitely one of the milestones in our journey of sustainability.โ€

Waste recycling has increased by 26% at the resort with the replacement of Molok bins with a Green cage, a four-compartment storage area for separating recyclables into glass, paper, plastic and aluminum. Garbage segregation is now commonplace with yellow and blue bags used by the stewarding staff to sort recyclable and common waste, and housekeeping staff using white and black oxo-biodegradable LDPE polythene bags. Paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, aluminum, waste oil and printer cartridges are all recycled. And all hotel staff follow the resortโ€™s green initiative to not use plastic bottles.

Green Globe Middle East Preferred Partner, Farnek Middle East LLC, has independently verified the sustainability achievements at JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort. Sandrine Le Biavant, Director Consultancy, said, โ€œThe resort has truly made the managerial decisions to be in control of the very challenging area of waste management and this means totally revamping the approach. The quantities of waste recycled between January and July 2014 increased by 11.8 tons compared to the same period in 2013.

โ€œThis was achieved through the re-emphasis on the segregation of plastics and paper as well as the launch of glass recycling in May 2013 and aluminum cans recycling in August 2013. It also corresponds to an increase of 36% of recycled waste per guest,โ€ added Ms. Le Biavant.

The re-certification process has been a great encouragement for the hotel teams who have seen the impact of their consistent practice and the results of new initiatives. Green technology being introduced to the resort includes a garbage compactor and a composting plant built to fertilize the resortโ€™s renowned bio-organic gardens which supply herbs and vegetables to its restaurants and kitchens. The gardens provide a pleasant green space where guests including children are invited to learn more about the food chain. In 2013, the resort established an aquaponics system that combines aquaculture with hydroponics. This perfect symbiotic relationship enables organic crops to be grown whilst at the same time producing seafood such as fish, crayfish or prawns significantly lowering transportation and other costs.

As part of their social and environmental responsibility JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort has initiated a monthly Eco-CSR calendar to engage staff in green issues. The program focuses on a โ€œHot Topic of the Monthโ€ such as environmental management aimed at raising general environmental awareness and also addressing specific hotel initiatives.

Other planned sustainable initiatives include solar golf carts, a solar water heating system (SWH) for staff accommodation and a solar lighting system installed in public access areas. Energy saving plans will see the resort replacing their electrical boiler with a gas one and steam will be utilized to thermally heat the swimming pool.

It is also planned that the S.T.P. (sewage treatment plant), which currently recycles water for the 128 acres of gardens and 9 hole golf course, will further increase in capacity to meet all golf course and irrigation requirements. To reduce carbon emissions and improve cost savings there will be an expansion of the desalination plant and water will no longer be bought from DEWA (Dubai Electricity and Water Authority) for irrigation purposes.

The resort is also working toward increased electrical efficiency by replacing FCUs (fan coil units) and chill-water-pipelines. Over the next 5 years two more screw type chillers will be purchased. Other measures introduced this year to reduce the resortโ€™s energy consumption include the installation of sensor lights in guest bathrooms and water dispensers fitted in all back of house areas.

David Thomson, Chief Operating Officer, JA Jebel Ali Golf Resort concluded, โ€œOur associates are the driving force of the green campaigns and we would like to thank each one of them for their hard work and devotion to this cause. We take great pleasure in the projects we have implemented so far and look forward to rolling out many more long term sustainable initiatives across our brand portfolio.โ€

About Green Globe Certification

Green Globe is the worldwide sustainability system based on internationally-accepted criteria for sustainable operation and management of travel and tourism businesses. Operating under a worldwide license, Green Globe is based in California, USA, and is represented in over 83 countries. Green Globe is an Affiliate Member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Green Globe is also a member of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC). For information, please visit www.greenglobe.com

Green Globe is a member of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) .

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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